Bad EBGames policy, watch out.

[Avatard]

I prepaid for two copies of FF:IV Adnaced at EBGames, one for me and one for a Christmas gift. It came in on Tuesday. I got a call on Wed saying "come pick it up today or it goes back on the shelf". I promptly told them how that wasn't going to happen because I had already paid in full and it was mine. Luckily I happened to be going to town that day so I picked it up, I live an hour away from that store.

I had a chat with the sales rep, he told me its the stories policy to put games back on the shelf after 48 hours even if you've paid in full, and the only compensation would be that I would have first dibs at the next shipment. What good would that do me? It was for a Christmas gift, I had to have one from THAT shipment. I never agreed to any such thing at the time I purchased those copies. So I told them that was the dumbest thing I've ever heard and I wouldn't be shopping with them again.

Its a real shame, I've spent SOOO much there and always done them right. I travel twice the distance just to purchase from that store than I would have to going to other stores. Plus I always prefer to support my local brick and mortar store instead of buying online. Are there any chains that do not treat their customers that way? And if not where is the best place to buy online?

[Biff_McFresh]

It would only make sense if you'd only paid for some of the total, and not in full. Or perhaps they have a real issue with storage and need to clear space as quickly as possible or something. Either way if you've paid in FULL, they really should hold it.

[Johnny_Rock]

Yeah, they are sneaky like that. I recently had problems with them when trying to return a game i bought online. Apparently if you buy a game online you cant return it at the storefront.

[Avatard]

Yea, I'm not some wishywash college student that puts down $5 on a game and never shows up again...

The store has been open a little over a year and in pre-orders alone I've reserved about 10 games and paid in full up front every time.

They didn't even call me the day it came in either. :hmm:

[Insaneclown]

EB Games...is just plain bad. I never buy games from them. There retarded just like their service.

[Avatard]

They tried to sell me a scratch policy for my GBA game. That was kinda retarded. Even if it did include some kinda extended warranty its A NINTENDO CART, you couldn't hurt it with a steamroller.

[Rogmeister]

I've shopped there a bit but I never really cared for paying full p rice for a game they've handled...they put the discs in a sleeve and stick it in a drawer and put the case up on the wall. I'm sure there's lots of places that do that but I'd just as soon go over to Wal-Mart and get a new still-sealed copy.

[SuperShark]

EB Games...is just plain bad. I never buy games from them. There retarded just like their service.

I HATE EB, I HATE their policies, I HATE their service, I HATE their prices, I HATE just about everything about them. I kinda makes me sick how much business I have provided them with and how EVERY SINGLE TIME I come out dissapointed. NOT ONCE have I gone in for ANYTHING and left happy, not to pre-order, trde-in, buy, sell, browse, ANYTHING! I HATE THEM!!!! I do fell sick everytime that I think about all of the business that I have given them, and even more when I know that I will most likely do it again. They have jipped me too many times.

My fav store for used video games localy is a place called GameXChange. Go to their site, gamexchange.com, and see if they got any stores near you. Always nice. Always helpful. Very fair prices. The amount of money they give you for a trade in sell I hear is fairly good, but I always go with the store cred which is a lot more. They will give you like $7+ for ANY Sega CD game. I LOVE GAMEXCHANGE WITH ALL MY HEART!!! They will also let you play and test any game and near all hardware in the store before even agreeing that you will promis them a chance of buying, and then if you do not like it, even if there are absolutly no probs with it, you can return most anything within like 3 days for any reason! I love them man.

[Insaneclown]

EB Games...is just plain bad. I never buy games from them. There retarded just like their service.

I HATE EB, I HATE their policies, I HATE their service, I HATE their prices, I HATE just about everything about them. I kinda makes me sick how much business I have provided them with and how EVERY SINGLE TIME I come out dissapointed. NOT ONCE have I gone in for ANYTHING and left happy, not to pre-order, trde-in, buy, sell, browse, ANYTHING! I HATE THEM!!!! I do fell sick everytime that I think about all of the business that I have given them, and even more when I know that I will most likely do it again. They have jipped me too many times.

My fav store for used video games localy is a place called GameXChange. Go to their site, gamexchange.com, and see if they got any stores near you. Always nice. Always helpful. Very fair prices. The amount of money they give you for a trade in sell I hear is fairly good, but I always go with the store cred which is a lot more. They will give you like $7+ for ANY Sega CD game. I LOVE GAMEXCHANGE WITH ALL MY HEART!!! They will also let you play and test any game and near all hardware in the store before even agreeing that you will promis them a chance of buying, and then if you do not like it, even if there are absolutly no probs with it, you can return most anything within like 3 days for any reason! I love them man.

Cool...thanks man. Ill check out that site. Sounds like a good place to buy games. You know I never buy games from EB games...I just laugh at there redicously prices on new and used games. Ill use there policy to whip my ass. EB games can kiss my fucking ass all I care. EB games saying should be "We like jipping your sorry asses because it's all about the money". LOL

[johno590]

EBgames... how do they suck so much?

For some reason I have never really liked EBgames, no particular reason, just liked other stores better. I posted a thread about an EBGames employee being an ass to me, and that made me not like them even more. So far what Im reading it doesn't seem im alone here.

I don't think I would ever buy anything from them ever again.

[exit]

I find EB games to be alright sometimes. I have one that goto on a regular basis, besides one run in with an asshole that used to work there and an idiot that was being trained, I never had any problems with the store. The one guy that works there has always been cool as fuck with me, he'll check to see if a game is complete if I ask (I.E. he checked for a used .hack they had the OVA.) The store also can have great stuff there, they baisacly call it the dumping ground of the local EB's.

The only store I hate going to is Game Stop, each one I went to most of the employees there acted like they were gods and shuned people off. The only good thing about that place was I was able to find the GC Zelda Collection for hella cheap.

[Crazycarl]

I have been finding it's been going down hill for a while. I stop going for a while after the guy i talked to left. Then i started to go to Gamestop, and they have been nice there so i stayed. I have gone in once or twice into EB, the store look like shit, so I just dont go anymore.

[DonMarco]

I prepaid for two copies of FF:IV Adnaced at EBGames, one for me and one for a Christmas gift. It came in on Tuesday. I got a call on Wed saying "come pick it up today or it goes back on the shelf". I promptly told them how that wasn't going to happen because I had already paid in full and it was mine. Luckily I happened to be going to town that day so I picked it up, I live an hour away from that store.

I had a chat with the sales rep, he told me its the stories policy to put games back on the shelf after 48 hours even if you've paid in full, and the only compensation would be that I would have first dibs at the next shipment. What good would that do me? It was for a Christmas gift, I had to have one from THAT shipment. I never agreed to any such thing at the time I purchased those copies. So I told them that was the dumbest thing I've ever heard and I wouldn't be shopping with them again.

Its a real shame, I've spent SOOO much there and always done them right. I travel twice the distance just to purchase from that store than I would have to going to other stores. Plus I always prefer to support my local brick and mortar store instead of buying online. Are there any chains that do not treat their customers that way? And if not where is the best place to buy online?
Wow, your store sucks. So does living an hour away from them. If they treat you like that, this is what you do: next time you are at the store, ask for the district manager's contact information. Complain to about the store to them in writing or by phone. Be specific and don't sound like some angry white trailerpark mom off Jerry Springer.

I'm pretty sure it will accomplish nothing radical (manager is fired and store slowly implodes like in The Poltergeist), but somehow someone will get in trouble over it. I'm gonna guarantee you right now that's not the first time at that store it's happened.

Finally, it's not EB Games policy to screw with preorder customers like this. At my store, we hold games well past 48 hours, especially if they can't make it on time. We also have some customers that live 30-60 minutes or more out. You got screwed, and feel free to do something about it. You can also get a refund and take your business elsewhere.

Peace.

[LAGO]

I really hate when you buy a game new and then they pull it off the shelf and put the disc in the case because it's the last copy. If I buy a game new then I wanna be the one peeling te shrinkwrap off of it.

It's just my opinion but I think they should sale that last copy to a person at a used game price.

[FantasiaWHT]

The reason that policy exists is so they get restocked quicker. The second shipment of a game is based on how much stock they have left. If people preorder games, and they're set aside, but never picked up, the restocking would be either long in coming, very small in quantity, or simply nonexistent.

It says right on the receipt that you got when you preordered the game what the policy was.

[punkoffgirl]

Moving to the gaming forum with all the other "EB Games sucks" threads!

[drummy]

My fav store for used video games localy is a place called GameXChange. Go to their site, gamexchange.com, and see if they got any stores near you. Always nice. Always helpful. Very fair prices. The amount of money they give you for a trade in sell I hear is fairly good, but I always go with the store cred which is a lot more. They will give you like $7+ for ANY Sega CD game. I LOVE GAMEXCHANGE WITH ALL MY HEART!!! They will also let you play and test any game and near all hardware in the store before even agreeing that you will promis them a chance of buying, and then if you do not like it, even if there are absolutly no probs with it, you can return most anything within like 3 days for any reason! I love them man.
That site does not exist.

[Avatard]

Now come on punkoff girl, how can you classify this as modern or classic?

Also I made sure to not put "OMG! EB SUx0z!!111!" or anything. This is legit.

So Fantasia, their policy is to max their efficiency while screwing customers? More power to them then. Count me out. Plus the tried the "oh its on your recipt" bull with me, and I had to bring up the fact that I DID NOT AGREE to such terms at the time I gave them money.

[kainemaxwell]

Complain to a DM or someone.

[§ Gideon §]

Yea, I'm not some wishywash college student that puts down $5 on a game and never shows up again...
As a wishywash college student, I resent that.

[Avatard]

You'll grow up. LOL

[FantasiaWHT]

So Fantasia, their policy is to max their efficiency while screwing customers? More power to them then. Count me out. Plus the tried the "oh its on your recipt" bull with me, and I had to bring up the fact that I DID NOT AGREE to such terms at the time I gave them money.

By buying ANYTHING from ANY retail establishment, you are agreeing to their terms. You don't have to verbally agree to a return or exchange policy and it's still binding.

And I really don't see it as screwing customers. You aren't losing your money or your game. I think running out of a game and not being able to get any more because of holds is worse for the customers.

[crazyjackcsa]

As an employee of EB I agree with you in principle however here is what happens on a lot of things: Some people pre order on Speculation, "yeah I'll put the 5 down cause I might want it, I might not, maybe yes, maybe no I don't know" Then it sits and it sits once it comes in. Happens on reserves all the time. The 48 hour pick up policy is really only a guideline. If you could give the employee a rock solid time on which you will be there after the 48 span, they will hold it. At our store we have a 360 premium in the back that just sits cause the person that preorders it refuses to come get it, why? Damned If I know, but it just sits there. If you aren't coming in for a week we could sell the your preorder and have another one in by the time you get in there a week later.

[Zigfried]

I understand that $5 thing. But this is a case where the game was paid off in full. It wasn't just pre-ordered -- it was pre-purchased. Maybe his EB doesn't recognize that distinction, but they should. Otherwise customers have no reason to lay down more than the minimum $5 on pre-orders.

[Zing]

Wow. That is all I can say. That is, by far, one of the worst policies I have heard of. That is right up there with the forced bundles of the 360.

I gave up on EB and here is my little story why. I had $40 in gift certificates. While I was browsing the Xbox games, I heard the boss telling the two associates that they really needed to push the used game sales. I finally decided to get Mechassault, which was selling for $39.95. The guy helping me kept pressuring me to buy the used copy for $5 less. I explained that the $5 meant nothing to me and I wanted a brand new copy. He continued stalling and trying to convince me to buy used, but I refused. I get home with me "new" copy of Mechassault and find that it was a goddamn reseal. :angry:

[l_lamb]

A presold item paid in full should not count towards the store's inventory for replenishment. It's already paid for. I know when I worked for TRU and now at Blockbuster that we held presold items for 30 days, even if they only had deposits on them. If there was a presold item that someone else wanted to buy, we would contact the presell customer and get permission to sell the item to someone else.

[Tony Montana]

As an employee of EB I agree with you in principle however here is what happens on a lot of things: Some people pre order on Speculation, "yeah I'll put the 5 down cause I might want it, I might not, maybe yes, maybe no I don't know" Then it sits and it sits once it comes in. Happens on reserves all the time. The 48 hour pick up policy is really only a guideline. If you could give the employee a rock solid time on which you will be there after the 48 span, they will hold it. At our store we have a 360 premium in the back that just sits cause the person that preorders it refuses to come get it, why? Damned If I know, but it just sits there. If you aren't coming in for a week we could sell the your preorder and have another one in by the time you get in there a week later.

Perfectly said. If you get in touch with someone and let them know when you will be in, its usually not a problem. And it doesnt matter how much you put down on it, it is not a prepurchase, it is a reserve with more money on it, there is no way it can be "sold" before it comes out, at least at GameStop. Theres many reasons why a paid in full copy is not held indefinitely or even rung through besides replinishment also.


Cool...thanks man. Ill check out that site. Sounds like a good place to buy games. You know I never buy games from EB games...I just laugh at there redicously prices on new and used games. Ill use there policy to whip my ass. EB games can kiss my fucking ass all I care. EB games saying should be "We like jipping your sorry asses because it's all about the money".

Wow, its good to know the insane part of your name is an accurate description.



Oh and yeah you can contact the DM and throw a fit if ya want, but it'd be a dick move because it is a stated company policy, we try to let everyone know when they reserve stuff thats how it is but you should inquire if you cant get it right away. If a store was completely rude or refused to hold it for you if you told them when you would be in within the next few days, okay, but its obvious from what you said you didnt, "I promptly told them that wasnt going to happen..." , thats funny, so go ahead talk to the DM, they will probably apologize or something but when he talks to the manager they will call ya a couple names and laugh it up. And before people freak out, that only happens for the unreasonable people.

[Avatard]

Look, I paid for it in full. And I wanted the first release. Giving it to another customer is WRONG. There is no way around that. There is no justification that could make any sense whatsoever. Who cares if the other customer wants it. I could let it sit and rot on my shelf. I paid for it, therefor the game does not exist to the public even if it is there physically. So they are willing to snatch it from me and piss off a loyal customer (me) just to save another customer from being moderatly annoyed that they have to wait? Sounds like they need to wake up. If customer #2 didn't care enough to reserve a copy why in the hell should he get mine that I reserved and paid for in full? Time is a critical issue here too, because one was for a Christmas gift, there is no "oh, I'll just wait till later".

I was not unreasonable. I never raised my voice. I never blamed the pawn behind the register even though he was a dick to me. What would you think if you had a christmas gift reserved and someone gives you a call and says "we're going to sell it to someone else tomorrow" after you've already paid your money. Then I wouldn't be able to get my cash back to get something else because my only compensation would be getting that game at a later release. Its completely bunk. And if I talked to the manager I wouldn't be rude either, he's a cool guy. I have no reason to be mad at him. Afterall he's just a pawn too.

Just put yourself in my shoes. From now on would you preorder from them and risk not being able to get your game at release or buy online and have it shipped to your house and not have to drive an hour?

There may be dodges and policies that state that I'm not actually buying the game and what not for legal reasons. But lets be real here, in all intents and purposes I'm buying the game. Even so, I'm not pissed off, I just have a disagreement with a bad policy. So I'll take my business elsewhere.

[kainemaxwell]

Then file a well-worded complaint with the manager or DM and go from there....don't they have a customer service line?

[calthaer]

EBGames was only cool when the majority of their store shelves held PC games. That was...what...10 years ago?

I do most of my game shopping online now, and am much happier.

[FantasiaWHT]

"I could let it sit and rot on my shelf."

Which is exactly why they have that policy. The money you paid isn't actually credited to the store UNTIL you pick it up. For another reason, stores are ranked on new release sales for 2 weeks. Pick it up after that and the store doesn't get credit for it. The third reason about restocking I already told you.

[Avatard]

BTW, I said my shelf, not theirs.

Which is my point. The store this, the store that. How about getting back to basics and make your customer base happy instead of worrying about some sales ranking list. Thats where success lies. Customers don't care about inventory structures.

And if thats not where success lies for EBGames, then I obviously have to find another store.

[Necron99]

I sometimes browse at EBGames but rarely buy anything, I find most other stores sell the same games a few dollars cheaper. Any games I've bought there used I ALWAYS ask if everything is with it and too see the condition(instructions,make sure there's no cuts, rips and what not), and if the game and case isn't in atleast decent condition I tell them I'm not interested anymore and why. I've never had a bad time dealing with them but I could tell that they get frustrated with me if I'm not happy with the condition on the game and have to put it back on the shelf. I think other people need to do this too so they understand they can't cut, rip, or bend things and expect to sell it(sometimes only $5 cheaper than new).

I do not trust them and will never pre-order or pre-purchase anything from them.

[FantasiaWHT]

"Customers don't care about inventory structures"

Maybe, but stockholders do. Do you just hate all corporations because they have policies that help them maximize profits?

[Oobgarm]

The only thing I don't get, is that if the customer has paid in full for the title, why not ring it through as a sale and put it in the back room for them? Someone who has paid for an item in FULL is most likely not going to flake out on you, and if they do it's THEIR loss, as the store is covered both with payment and inventory replenishment. As a former GameStop ASM, I know we did this with no problems. It didn't happen often and it helped keep our store's customers happy and buying from us.

[devils advocate]

"Customers don't care about inventory structures"

Maybe, but stockholders do. Do you just hate all corporations because they have policies that help them maximize profits?

This thread is pretty sad. I am a regional manager for a Telecom company in Canada. We are a Mid-sized to Large company by Canadian taxation standards.

While I love to support business practices, and the right to return moneys invested to the dollar, this is an intolerable practice. I showed this thread to my colleagues and everybody just laughed.

There is no way that MY management community would ever think that it is acceptable to sell a PRE-SOLD item. Regardless of the scenario. I can not believe anyone here would support the practice, unless they are entry level, or are hard line on company rules.

If the money is received, it is received. Point blank. If it comes to the various company accounts, it is in the shareholders hands, or really, their year end staements. Does anybody think that any kind of income is not tracked? Everything is, save in store deposits etc;

Certainly, individual stores would do shady, or "grey" area things on their own. That is why my colleagues and I are employed. Most store managers are entry level management, and try incredibly hard to do a good job, while receiving little pay, and in most cases, little support. They do the best they can, and often circumvent real policies, by trying to balance store goals to actual customer service. Very hard! In the real world, sometimes these ideals do not match. And, In a chain as large as EB, or Gamestop etc; These frontline managers are put on the spot to enforce seemable "unbreakable" rules.

This is one of the hardest to deal with logicals, of a company going from small- large. Which both stores have done over the last 10-15 years.

Cheers, and Merry Christmas!!!

[devils advocate]

As an addendum, from the people I work with;

They had wanted me to mention that we spend more time investigating internal theft and/or manipulation than any sort of customer relation issues.

I would hope that speaks volumes for various issues that has come up as of late. And from various seminars, it is similiar in most industries.

Regards, Julian

[devils advocate]

As an employee of EB I agree with you in principle however here is what happens on a lot of things: Some people pre order on Speculation, "yeah I'll put the 5 down cause I might want it, I might not, maybe yes, maybe no I don't know" Then it sits and it sits once it comes in. Happens on reserves all the time. The 48 hour pick up policy is really only a guideline. If you could give the employee a rock solid time on which you will be there after the 48 span, they will hold it. At our store we have a 360 premium in the back that just sits cause the person that preorders it refuses to come get it, why? Damned If I know, but it just sits there. If you aren't coming in for a week we could sell the your preorder and have another one in by the time you get in there a week later.

Perfectly said. If you get in touch with someone and let them know when you will be in, its usually not a problem. And it doesnt matter how much you put down on it, it is not a prepurchase, it is a reserve with more money on it, there is no way it can be "sold" before it comes out, at least at GameStop. Theres many reasons why a paid in full copy is not held indefinitely or even rung through besides replinishment also.


Cool...thanks man. Ill check out that site. Sounds like a good place to buy games. You know I never buy games from EB games...I just laugh at there redicously prices on new and used games. Ill use there policy to whip my ass. EB games can kiss my fucking ass all I care. EB games saying should be "We like jipping your sorry asses because it's all about the money".

Wow, its good to know the insane part of your name is an accurate description.



Oh and yeah you can contact the DM and throw a fit if ya want, but it'd be a dick move because it is a stated company policy, we try to let everyone know when they reserve stuff thats how it is but you should inquire if you cant get it right away. If a store was completely rude or refused to hold it for you if you told them when you would be in within the next few days, okay, but its obvious from what you said you didnt, "I promptly told them that wasnt going to happen..." , thats funny, so go ahead talk to the DM, they will probably apologize or something but when he talks to the manager they will call ya a couple names and laugh it up. And before people freak out, that only happens for the unreasonable people.

I personally, have little or ZERO personal contact with my managers for exactly this reason. No customer complaint is EVER laughed at within my company. If you have any manager that ever does this, he is not doing his job properly. Go higher than that manager if you must. You can always get the phone number you need!

Most customers have a reasonable problem. You just need to seperate the EMOTION from the actual problem. Most can be fixed. Some can not.

[sabre2922]

to put it nicely :D I dont like EB games and have no luv for Gamestop either.

The majority of the time the employees act like stuck up a$$holes and most of them have little to NO KNOWLEDGE about videogames/systems etc. at ALL.

And that my friends is PUTTING IT NICELY LOL

[Tokimemofan]

you think eb games/ gamestop is bad try Gamedude what load of (insert insult here) at least they have very few chew toys compared to other stores

[DonMarco]

The only thing I don't get, is that if the customer has paid in full for the title, why not ring it through as a sale and put it in the back room for them? Someone who has paid for an item in FULL is most likely not going to flake out on you, and if they do it's THEIR loss, as the store is covered both with payment and inventory replenishment. As a former GameStop ASM, I know we did this with no problems. It didn't happen often and it helped keep our store's customers happy and buying from us.
Mainly because it's not the stores money, it still belongs to the customer. EB isn't a bank and we don't give interest.

And what if they got another copy elsewhere and wanted a refund? There's paperwork involved that shouldn't be involved. It's just a sloppy way to make sells. Keeping the customers happy is cool though.



"Customers don't care about inventory structures"

Maybe, but stockholders do. Do you just hate all corporations because they have policies that help them maximize profits?
There is no way that MY management community would ever think that it is acceptable to sell a PRE-SOLD item. Regardless of the scenario. I can not believe anyone here would support the practice, unless they are entry level, or are hard line on company rules.
It's a two way deal. Under ideal circumstances, if every preorder/presell/pre-whatever customer witho 48 hours of the launch, there would be no problem. If they can't then what's the store going to do? Is it the store's fault? Should it be 72 hours? 14 days? I mean, how long is "not long enough"? What possible reason could a customer not be able to come to a store in a two-day window, barring some freak hospital visit out-of-state. And even then, if they were to call in and say they'll pick it up, 99 out of a 1000 times, that should be fine.

Aside from the recently released Animal Crossing DS, our EB hasn't really had anything like this happen. Excet with the 360s, and blah blah blah.

Like I said earlier, Avatard, complain to the DM but don't act like a dick. If you have, how did it go? Did you refund your money and throw a fit. I would have. HELLS YEAH.

[cyberfluxor]

I've done only done 1 return to them on a used game and ended up trading it for another game, which I was happy with. But ya, I only buy PC games there.

[devils advocate]

The only thing I don't get, is that if the customer has paid in full for the title, why not ring it through as a sale and put it in the back room for them? Someone who has paid for an item in FULL is most likely not going to flake out on you, and if they do it's THEIR loss, as the store is covered both with payment and inventory replenishment. As a former GameStop ASM, I know we did this with no problems. It didn't happen often and it helped keep our store's customers happy and buying from us.
Mainly because it's not the stores money, it still belongs to the customer. EB isn't a bank and we don't give interest.

And what if they got another copy elsewhere and wanted a refund? There's paperwork involved that shouldn't be involved. It's just a sloppy way to make sells. Keeping the customers happy is cool though.



"Customers don't care about inventory structures"

Maybe, but stockholders do. Do you just hate all corporations because they have policies that help them maximize profits?
There is no way that MY management community would ever think that it is acceptable to sell a PRE-SOLD item. Regardless of the scenario. I can not believe anyone here would support the practice, unless they are entry level, or are hard line on company rules.
It's a two way deal. Under ideal circumstances, if every preorder/presell/pre-whatever customer witho 48 hours of the launch, there would be no problem. If they can't then what's the store going to do? Is it the store's fault? Should it be 72 hours? 14 days? I mean, how long is "not long enough"? What possible reason could a customer not be able to come to a store in a two-day window, barring some freak hospital visit out-of-state. And even then, if they were to call in and say they'll pick it up, 99 out of a 1000 times, that should be fine.

Aside from the recently released Animal Crossing DS, our EB hasn't really had anything like this happen. Excet with the 360s, and blah blah blah.

Like I said earlier, Avatard, complain to the DM but don't act like a dick. If you have, how did it go? Did you refund your money and throw a fit. I would have. HELLS YEAH.

No. It's not a two way street. Customers do not HAVE to shop with you. It is a ONE way street. Everything that happens to a customer, all the way up the companies chain of command, effects the way they will do business with you again... Or not.

As a "DM" that handles two full Canadian provinces.. Probably equal to 6-7 American states geographically, The customer, while not ALWAYS right, does deserve to ALWAYS have their pre paid merchandise held for them. Our company has held items for over 6 months. If it is paid for, and the money is on the stores receipts.. Who cares?

You sound like a store employee who hates to have to worry about "grey" area merchandise. Sorry, you would work for/with me for about five minutes.

Who pays your wages , if you are in retail?...............The business?

[devils advocate]

The only thing I don't get, is that if the customer has paid in full for the title, why not ring it through as a sale and put it in the back room for them? Someone who has paid for an item in FULL is most likely not going to flake out on you, and if they do it's THEIR loss, as the store is covered both with payment and inventory replenishment. As a former GameStop ASM, I know we did this with no problems. It didn't happen often and it helped keep our store's customers happy and buying from us.
Mainly because it's not the stores money, it still belongs to the customer. EB isn't a bank and we don't give interest.

And what if they got another copy elsewhere and wanted a refund? There's paperwork involved that shouldn't be involved. It's just a sloppy way to make sells. Keeping the customers happy is cool though.



"Customers don't care about inventory structures"

Maybe, but stockholders do. Do you just hate all corporations because they have policies that help them maximize profits?
There is no way that MY management community would ever think that it is acceptable to sell a PRE-SOLD item. Regardless of the scenario. I can not believe anyone here would support the practice, unless they are entry level, or are hard line on company rules.
It's a two way deal. Under ideal circumstances, if every preorder/presell/pre-whatever customer witho 48 hours of the launch, there would be no problem. If they can't then what's the store going to do? Is it the store's fault? Should it be 72 hours? 14 days? I mean, how long is "not long enough"? What possible reason could a customer not be able to come to a store in a two-day window, barring some freak hospital visit out-of-state. And even then, if they were to call in and say they'll pick it up, 99 out of a 1000 times, that should be fine.

Aside from the recently released Animal Crossing DS, our EB hasn't really had anything like this happen. Excet with the 360s, and blah blah blah.

Like I said earlier, Avatard, complain to the DM but don't act like a dick. If you have, how did it go? Did you refund your money and throw a fit. I would have. HELLS YEAH.

Wow. I don't think you realize who pays your paycheque.

Better take some classes....... Quickly!

[DonMarco]

blah blah blah
As a "DM" that handles two full Canadian provinces.. Probably equal to 6-7 American states geographically, The customer, while not ALWAYS right, does deserve to ALWAYS have their pre-paid merchandise held for them. Our company has held items for over 6 months. If it is paid for, and the money is on the stores receipts.. Who cares?
"Deserve" is the key word. So is "customer".


Who pays your wages, if you are in retail?...............The business?
Haha! For a second there I thought you realized I was an intellegent gamer and a hard-core associate for EB GAMES and have 18+ months under my belt and well over 5000000 positvie selling experiences. So, yeah, I'm "totally" retail and "virtually" eperienced enough to talk this out. So! EB Games (technically GameStop) pays my wages, and I don't work for commisions. I've no blemishes, bad marks on my record and am generally TOO AWESOME for discreditment.



blah blah blah
No. It's not a two way street. Customers do not HAVE to shop with you. It is a ONE way street. Everything that happens to a customer, all the way up the companies chain of command, effects the way they will do business with you again... Or not.
I'm also really nice to customers. First name basis with at least half the regulars, you know? Ask any manager I've had. Apparently, I'm the only nice, respecting and polite EB employee in America, hot damn!

Mr."DM". Let me add I have a "slight" idea how game launches go. I've done enough of them in my podunk town in Florida. Which is what I'll call "typical". In my "typical" town and for well over 5 years, I've seen how many games and (personally) (5) systems launched. I've never given away a presell and held preorders the required 48 hours and (if necessary) sold games that people didn't pick up in the first 48-72 hours. I'm really nice about that.


You sound like a store employee who hates to have to worry about "grey" area merchandise. Sorry, you would work for/with me for about five minutes.
I don't see the fault in that statement, or why that's a good/bad thing. Then again, you have no idea who I am. OR DO YOU??????

And what's "grey" area merchandice?

[FantasiaWHT]

And telecom assumes that what's true for his field of work is the same for video game retail.

[crazyjackcsa]

I think what people are arguing on is the idea which copy of the games is thiers. Here is how it could work With your route Telecom. I can come in and preorder say 6 copies of the same game right. Now if I never come in and pick these games up, and the game is not expected to have a large following then they will never, ever be replenished. EVER. Faulty ordering setup? Yes, but we are working in the confines of what we have right now. They will just sit there, people will come in and ask about them and be turned away. Now the company has to way the rights of the individual customer vs. potential customers. Again, this is only hypothetical, because as I've said a customer can ask the game to be held longer and it will be. So you say, "That's great, I'll be by in about 6 weeks!" We could sell your 6 copies 4 times over and still have 6 copies of the games in when you finally show up. If it wasn't really important to for you to have first shipment, why Preorder? For all intents and purposes the 24hrs is only a guideline to disuade people from pre ordering on Speculation.

[devils advocate]

[quote=DonMarco]blah blah blah
As a "DM" that handles two full Canadian provinces.. Probably equal to 6-7 American states geographically, The customer, while not ALWAYS right, does deserve to ALWAYS have their pre-paid merchandise held for them. Our company has held items for over 6 months. If it is paid for, and the money is on the stores receipts.. Who cares?
"Deserve" is the key word. So is "customer".





I don't understand that reply. Sorry.

[devils advocate]

And telecom assumes that what's true for his field of work is the same for video game retail.


It is generally. Retail is retail, regarding the treatment of customers. Especially in middle management. There are many who know less about the product than the floor staff.

How many times have you had some sort of manager visit, and think, "What an ass, he knows nothing about what we do".

This doesn't mean they are useless, it means their job focuses on other areas. Customer relations, employee relations, store layout, lease management, community relations, demographic reports etc;

I work with people who have varying degrees of knowledge in their field. Most things can be learned quickly, and often times management for any retail field is hired for what they bring, not what they know.

Some retailers hire from within for mid management, and some do not. Both ways work, and seemingly the best is a compromise of the two.

My current director had little knowledge of our field when he started. He learned, and is not only proficient with the products now, but the knowledge he brought with him from his other field, and his level of education is invaluable to us now.

So yes. Retail is retail. Most philosophies carry through the various types. Those who understand that, and work within it will prosper. Those who don't..... Well, enjoy being an entry level clerk, or finish off that trade or degree.

[Oobgarm]

The only thing I don't get, is that if the customer has paid in full for the title, why not ring it through as a sale and put it in the back room for them? Someone who has paid for an item in FULL is most likely not going to flake out on you, and if they do it's THEIR loss, as the store is covered both with payment and inventory replenishment. As a former GameStop ASM, I know we did this with no problems. It didn't happen often and it helped keep our store's customers happy and buying from us.
Mainly because it's not the stores money, it still belongs to the customer. EB isn't a bank and we don't give interest.

And what if they got another copy elsewhere and wanted a refund? There's paperwork involved that shouldn't be involved. It's just a sloppy way to make sells. Keeping the customers happy is cool though.

If you call the customer and state you rintentions on ringin the sale through, and they agree to buy the game from you. If they can't make in to your store under the established 'pick up window', but state that they will be in to get the game from you in a few days, how is that a problem? No matter what, things aren't always going to run 100% smoothly and there are always going to be exceptions, so why not suffer the paperwork a couple of times to ensure that no one storms out of the store pissed off and spread ill word of mouth, thereby causing other people to question their faith in EB/GS or what have you. It's better to bite the bullet a couple of times in situations like that(which shouldn't be often at all), build rapport and repeat business.

You see all these posts that game store employees are assholes or whatever, and that's sad. Things like this make me realize that the people who go out of their way to help customers out, while still maintaining good inventory management and sales volume, are few and far between. Whether that is a result of the company's preaching or the indivdual's attitude is beyond me.

That's one of the reasons I'm glad I no longer work in the retail games industry.

[devils advocate]

The only thing I don't get, is that if the customer has paid in full for the title, why not ring it through as a sale and put it in the back room for them? Someone who has paid for an item in FULL is most likely not going to flake out on you, and if they do it's THEIR loss, as the store is covered both with payment and inventory replenishment. As a former GameStop ASM, I know we did this with no problems. It didn't happen often and it helped keep our store's customers happy and buying from us.
Mainly because it's not the stores money, it still belongs to the customer. EB isn't a bank and we don't give interest.

And what if they got another copy elsewhere and wanted a refund? There's paperwork involved that shouldn't be involved. It's just a sloppy way to make sells. Keeping the customers happy is cool though.



"Customers don't care about inventory structures"

Maybe, but stockholders do. Do you just hate all corporations because they have policies that help them maximize profits?
There is no way that MY management community would ever think that it is acceptable to sell a PRE-SOLD item. Regardless of the scenario. I can not believe anyone here would support the practice, unless they are entry level, or are hard line on company rules.
It's a two way deal. Under ideal circumstances, if every preorder/presell/pre-whatever customer witho 48 hours of the launch, there would be no problem. If they can't then what's the store going to do? Is it the store's fault? Should it be 72 hours? 14 days? I mean, how long is "not long enough"? What possible reason could a customer not be able to come to a store in a two-day window, barring some freak hospital visit out-of-state. And even then, if they were to call in and say they'll pick it up, 99 out of a 1000 times, that should be fine.

Aside from the recently released Animal Crossing DS, our EB hasn't really had anything like this happen. Excet with the 360s, and blah blah blah.

Like I said earlier, Avatard, complain to the DM but don't act like a dick. If you have, how did it go? Did you refund your money and throw a fit. I would have. HELLS YEAH.

I think it's important to remember that I was talking about a PRE SOLD item, and not a pre ordered one.

I was going to respond to each of your replies, but just don't have time. Sorry. You made some good points.

What I will say, is that you sound like a very dedicated employee. Which is great. You are invaluable to your company, and I wish you well there. I've worked retail for nearly twenty years now,fifteen in mid management, and love it! I'm still learning what makes a happy retail environment, and things always change in both products and people!

On the other hand, I can't believe that you think your paycheque comes from EB/Gamestop. It does directly. Indirectly, it comes from every customer who spends ANY money with your company. Sometimes, if you think of it that way, it changes your thoughts toward the more "difficult" transactions.

Sadly, (and this is not aimed at any gamestore employee directly), I have heard some nightmare stories about retail employees in the game/electronic fields lately. Mostly regarding EB and Gamestop. And mainly to do with the last month or so, including, but not only, the 360 launch.

Unlike many though, I do not believe it is the store level clerks fault. It simply is not.

Regardless of stock issues, release dates, allotments from MS or other suppliers.

It is their upper/middle managements fault. Period. When your frontline staff are battling, what seems to them, as an insurmountable situation, you help them. Anyway you can. Even if that includes your CEO standing on the sales floor passing out "don't hate us.... please!" buttons.

EB/Gamestop has failed their employees, and their customers. In the long run, it will hit their bottom line. Short term will be stressed out clerks and customers who both want one thing. Information. Of which neither seems to be receiving from "their team".

[devils advocate]

Who pays your wages, if you are in retail?...............The business?
Haha! For a second there I thought you realized I was an intellegent gamer and a hard-core associate for EB GAMES and have 18+ months under my belt and well over 5000000 positvie selling experiences. So, yeah, I'm "totally" retail and "virtually" eperienced enough to talk this out. So! EB Games (technically GameStop) pays my wages, and I don't work for commisions. I've no blemishes, bad marks on my record and am generally TOO AWESOME for discreditment.


[quote=DonMarco]blah blah blah



DonMarco,

It's great to be an expert in your field. It will help your customers make good decisions. Don't let it be arrogance though, let it be guidance. (and I'm not saying it is).

It is equally great to be well versed in your company policy, and to be able to apply the rules where neccessary. Mind you, it's better to know them, and utilize them to HELP your customers experience be the best it can be. It will make yours better also.

It is commendable to have a "perfect" record with your companies management. It is better to have one with your customers though.

I think It's awesome you have a good repour with your clients, but sad that you mention over and over how valuable YOU are, and how knowledgable.

Frankly, I would say the customer is the most valuable, as he pays your wages. And frankly the most knowledgable. He/she can make a very fast KNOWLEDGABLE decision on where to shop!!

[DonMarco]

blah blah blah
As a "DM" that handles two full Canadian provinces.. Probably equal to 6-7 American states geographically, The customer, while not ALWAYS right, does deserve to ALWAYS have their pre-paid merchandise held for them. Our company has held items for over 6 months. If it is paid for, and the money is on the stores receipts.. Who cares?
"Deserve" is the key word. So is "customer".
I don't understand that reply. Sorry.
You don't have to. I'll link Merriam-Webster if you need it. I'm saying that the words "deserve" and "customer" aren't the best choices of wordings.

Sorry. PM me if you feel the need to drag this out further.

[devils advocate]

blah blah blah
As a "DM" that handles two full Canadian provinces.. Probably equal to 6-7 American states geographically, The customer, while not ALWAYS right, does deserve to ALWAYS have their pre-paid merchandise held for them. Our company has held items for over 6 months. If it is paid for, and the money is on the stores receipts.. Who cares?
"Deserve" is the key word. So is "customer".
I don't understand that reply. Sorry.
You don't have to. I'll link Merriam-Webster if you need it. I'm saying that the words "deserve" and "customer" aren't the best choices of wordings.

Sorry. PM me if you feel the need to drag this out further.


@_@ If you think "deserve" and "customer" are poor choices in wording together, then maybe you need to take a long, hard look at your practices. Read my earlier post on what customers deserve from your business and from you.

And please, dont patronize me,by inferring dictionary links. I was not doing that to you. If I was, I would have mentioned something about your earlier post describing yourself as an intelligent gamer, all the while spelling intelligent incorrectly....

But I digress, I will not insult you. But I love a GOOD debate. Hence the name, I guess.

Regards'

[FantasiaWHT]

Just one thing, Devil's advocate. I alluded to differences in entertainment electronics and other retail businesses but didn't specify.

What I'm getting at precisely is that the large majority of other retail businesses do not have to deal with massive rushes and shortages on the day of the release of a product. People don't rush to the store when the 2006 line of men's ties comes out. They may occassionaly face shortages, but rarely immediately after release and usually only during the holiday season.

I had another question, you mentioned hearing about horrible practices with the recent Xbox 360 launch. Are you alluding to forced bundles? If you are, read on, if not, feel free to skip this.

Retail stores make almost NO profit on the sale of a system itself. The manufacturer's actually LOSE money on it. Also, because of the manufacturer's strict rules on pricing, we are not allowed to let the free market dictate the price. Retail stores CANNOT raise the prices to what people are actually willing to pay (check ebay) because they face the possibility of retaliation in the form of not having their stock replenished. So the only way they can actually BENEFIT by selling systems is if they also sell games (which also have a very low profit margin) and better, accessories.

[Darren870]

I've been working for eb games for 4 years and I have stoped getting involved in these topics. Honestly its really all a matter of which EB you go to. I know when people are dealing with me or most of the employees at my EB they leave with a good experience and usually money saved and all this other crap.

But thats not like that everywhere.

What should of happened is this ... if they called you and you told them that you couldn't pick it up in 48 hrs they should of rung it out and just placed it in the hold bin with the pick up recipt that you have to sign. Then it would of been out of there inventory.

Thats what we do in most cases like this...unless we know we wont sell out of the game.

Whatever...I don't like getting involved in these topics because I can't speak for other EB's.

[Whiskers the Wonder Cat]

I stopped going there for years now.

I don't want a "new" game to put into some ziplock bag, and then taken out by the cashier, touching the playside of the disc with all his fingers, THEN dropping it on the floor, accident or not, then, putting it back into the case, and selling it to me.

Fuck all that.

[devils advocate]

Just one thing, Devil's advocate. I alluded to differences in entertainment electronics and other retail businesses but didn't specify.

What I'm getting at precisely is that the large majority of other retail businesses do not have to deal with massive rushes and shortages on the day of the release of a product. People don't rush to the store when the 2006 line of men's ties comes out. They may occassionaly face shortages, but rarely immediately after release and usually only during the holiday season.

I had another question, you mentioned hearing about horrible practices with the recent Xbox 360 launch. Are you alluding to forced bundles? If you are, read on, if not, feel free to skip this.

Retail stores make almost NO profit on the sale of a system itself. The manufacturer's actually LOSE money on it. Also, because of the manufacturer's strict rules on pricing, we are not allowed to let the free market dictate the price. Retail stores CANNOT raise the prices to what people are actually willing to pay (check ebay) because they face the possibility of retaliation in the form of not having their stock replenished. So the only way they can actually BENEFIT by selling systems is if they also sell games (which also have a very low profit margin) and better, accessories.

Lots of other industries deal with major backorders and short supply. You just notice yours, because your in the midst of it. Just one example would be car dealerships. When my wife bought her Honda Del Sol some years ago, we had to wait almost four months for it. Why? High demand, low quantity. If I want that Civic SI, it's probably on the lot, but if I want that S2000, I'll probably be waiting.
Toy stores go through it yearly, with various "hot" items, which is exactly what the 360 is this year. Though the time of year would have an effect there.
So, while the launches may be a unique shortage, ao are the ones other retailers go through. No less trying on the staff, and certainly the end user, the customer.

I'll have to admit to not buying anything NEW or pre ordering anything from EB, so I don't know what their situation is, but; The stores I have shopped at this year only ever seemed to have Xbox 360 shortages, and maybe the DS for a few days. Lots of PSP's to be had, and I've certainly never had any difficulty getting any major release game I've wanted.... Save for Snes Street fighter II about 10-15 years ago. I've had to go to Microplay for my Megaten games, but it seems major retailers don't carry many Atlus games.


Part II;

While I wasn't commenting on any retailers "bundling" policies at all, the only thing I would say is that it's perfectly legal to do this. But the ethical side may be touchier. We've seen all over the net what people think of the "ethics" behind forced bundles.

What I was commenting more on, was the amount of pre orders that have gone unfulfilled from EB/Gamespot. I keep hearing of people who pre ordered in may and June, whom have still not received their systems. Now, if that was par for the course, then it would be unimportant. But, I pre ordered mine From Future Shop Canada (owned by BestBuy) on September 21st. I received mine on launch. Why? because a multi million dollar retailer decide that it was best to highly limit preorders. They only started them on sept 20th,and limited them to 50. Why? their projected allotments were higher. They were trimmed to 24 units a wek before launch. But they have already filled their remaining 26 because they kept their numbers down. Just in case.

Now my local Eb's on the other hand, of which 2 are located within a few stores of my own, were quite interested in telling me how many pre orders they had "accomplished". One store was 150, and the other almost 200!

EB upper management must have been smoking wacky tobaccy to think they would fulfill that on a launch, even for friggin Bic pens! So now, when they received their 24 or whatever, (or even 2 or 100, it doesn't matter) they left a large portion of people without.

Compare the two retailers. Who will have an easier time fulfilling their pre orders? The store that only slightly oversold and under delivered, or the store that MAJORLY oversold and under delivered.

Which retailer is likely to have more complaints? Simple isn't it?

Which brings me full circle to another post I made. It's not the employees of EB's fault, and their management hung them out to dry not once, but twice. Once for allowing such an obvious cash grab, and the other for not HELPING their front line staff in every conceivable way when the plan went ass backwards on them. Again, mid-upper managements fault. Not the store manager or any of the glorified key holders and such. Eb hung their employees and customers out to dry, regardless of any shortages from MS.

As for the little or no profit on hardware? I won't comment much further than saying it is called a subsidized product, and many other industries do it daily. It's part of furthering your business, and in many cases, part of your business model. Do you really think that "free" cell phone is free? Or do you think somebody "subsidizes" it, somewhere along the way. Same philosophy exactly. Give away your wares to force the purchases afterwards.

IE MS loses $127(Or about?) on each box. Retailers also put little or no margin. But hopefully everbody makes up for it with (as you mentioned) add ons, be it games controllers whatever.

A cell phone company "give away" the harware, which may cost up to 300 bucks, because usually you get a term contract with guaranteed residuals.

Now.. Gotta go! Or I'll be unemployed! LOL

[Howie6925]

Wow. That is all I can say. That is, by far, one of the worst policies I have heard of. That is right up there with the forced bundles of the 360.

I gave up on EB and here is my little story why. I had $40 in gift certificates. While I was browsing the Xbox games, I heard the boss telling the two associates that they really needed to push the used game sales. I finally decided to get Mechassault, which was selling for $39.95. The guy helping me kept pressuring me to buy the used copy for $5 less. I explained that the $5 meant nothing to me and I wanted a brand new copy. He continued stalling and trying to convince me to buy used, but I refused. I get home with me "new" copy of Mechassault and find that it was a goddamn reseal. :angry:

LOL , sorry but that is just funny.

[Evilsaber2922]

i like ebgames they are my friends

i want all my new games to be open then put into a ziplock bagg rubbed on the carpetand passed around like a frisby before i pay fullprice for it
why doesnt wal-mart have this policy
like myvery good friend at eb told me its still new
redrum

[dreams]

i like ebgames they are my friends

i want all my new games to be open then put into a ziplock bagg rubbed on the carpetand passed around like a frisby before i pay fullprice for it
why doesnt wal-mart have this policy
like myvery good friend at eb told me its still new
redrum

The reason that Walmart doesn't have this policy is because all of the games are locked behind glass. EBGames takes 1 new copy of each game, opens it to remove the disc, and places it on the wall so you can easily look at the back of the game to read the description and details and even look at the instruction manual to decide if you want the game or if you would like the gameplay without ever needing to get an associate. You are free to look at games at your leisure and not have someone breathing down your neck waiting for you to hand the game back so they can lock it back up.

Personally, I prefer EBs way of doing it. I'm fine with the slight chance of getting an opened new game for the ease of browsing.

You guys are also making gross generalizations. While occasionally one of these games are a bit scuffed, more often than not the game is in pristine condition and most people (i.e., non-collectors) are perfectly fine getting that copy. The store also sells this opened new copy absolutely last so only one copy has to be this way (I've seen a guy get in trouble for almost selling the display copy instead of a sealed one).

If you don't want the opened copy, all you have to do is say so. In all my experiences, they were happy to call and check at other stores for me for whatever I needed.

And as for the used games, I'm sure it's been stated, but that's where the game stores make their money. Of course they are going to push it.


Compare the two retailers. Who will have an easier time fulfilling their pre orders? The store that only slightly oversold and under delivered, or the store that MAJORLY oversold and under delivered.

Which retailer is likely to have more complaints? Simple isn't it?

Ah yes. But, you're forgetting one thing. When the next shipments on 360s come in, the people on the preorder list, no matter how long it is, will get their systems. Before any unit gets put out on the floor for general sale, ALL the preorders will be fullfilled.

So sure, EB may have taken a large number of preorders, but these people are in no way screwed. They don't have to wait outside in line for over 24 hours at BestBuy to get their system when a new shipment arrives. They will get theirs in the order it was reserved.

And yes, I know you mentioned the whole MS delay/shortage thing, but you really didn't do it justice. The fact that enough units were not shipped to fullfill the preorders is not EB's or Best Buy's or anyone else's fault except Microsoft. If I was told that I was getting X number of units in, you can bet that I would try to get that many preorders. It only makes sense, as the people preordering would most likely be the same people dropping money right away on games and other things too.

Anyways, I'm tired of people always bashing EB or any other game store honestly. Sure, everyone is bound to have a bad day at a store once in a while, but it's the same for any other store as well, be it department stores or restaurants or what not. The people who work at them are human.

[Diatribal Deity]

Here is a little tidbit of information I'd like to pass along...

If after 90 days a pre-order is not claimed, Eb instructs its management to clear the pre-orders out of the system thus pocketing thousands in unclaimed deposits. NO ATTEMPT IS GENERALLY MADE TO CALL OR NOTIFY THESE PEOPLE (as it is assumed they have already been notified-which we all know does not frequently happen). Personally at a high volume store, hundreds even thousands of dollars is made this way.

Also in many states, if the stores policy is not posted in the store, it is irrelevant what it says on the receipt. Check out your local consumer laws and you can have a field day with these companies.

[Darren870]

Dreams is the only one that makes sense in this tread.


Here is a little tidbit of information I'd like to pass along...

If after 90 days a pre-order is not claimed, Eb instructs its management to clear the pre-orders out of the system thus pocketing thousands in unclaimed deposits. NO ATTEMPT IS GENERALLY MADE TO CALL OR NOTIFY THESE PEOPLE (as it is assumed they have already been notified-which we all know does not frequently happen). Personally at a high volume store, hundreds even thousands of dollars is made this way.

Im sorry but thats gamestop. EB keeps there pre-orders for over a year, maybe two at that. I still have pre-orders for halo 2 in my computer and GTA san-andreas. What are they suppose to do with the money anyways? If someone changes there phone # and they forget they have a pre-order there is no way we can get in touch with them. Simple as that.


Also in many states, if the stores policy is not posted in the store, it is irrelevant what it says on the receipt. Check out your local consumer laws and you can have a field day with these companies.

At most eb's its right on the counter under a piece of glass.

Grow up..

[Diatribal Deity]

Dreams is the only one that makes sense in this tread.


Here is a little tidbit of information I'd like to pass along...

If after 90 days a pre-order is not claimed, Eb instructs its management to clear the pre-orders out of the system thus pocketing thousands in unclaimed deposits. NO ATTEMPT IS GENERALLY MADE TO CALL OR NOTIFY THESE PEOPLE (as it is assumed they have already been notified-which we all know does not frequently happen). Personally at a high volume store, hundreds even thousands of dollars is made this way.

Im sorry but thats gamestop. EB keeps there pre-orders for over a year, maybe two at that. I still have pre-orders for halo 2 in my computer and GTA san-andreas. What are they suppose to do with the money anyways? If someone changes there phone # and they forget they have a pre-order there is no way we can get in touch with them. Simple as that.


Also in many states, if the stores policy is not posted in the store, it is irrelevant what it says on the receipt. Check out your local consumer laws and you can have a field day with these companies.

At most eb's its right on the counter under a piece of glass.

Grow up..

Please go and ask a regional, DM, or manager before making statements like this as this was not some immature misdirected piece of information. If your pre-orders have not been removed, your manager has not been doing his job as this task comes out in a directive generally every quarter.

[FantasiaWHT]

It's about TWICE a year, not quarterly, and it's removing preorders that are over 6 months old. That's directly per my RM.

Also, it benefits a store more to call and get those preorders to either come pick up their game or (much more likely) transfer the preorder to something else they are interested in or use the money to buy something else. We'd much rather ring up a sale of a full game than add a measly $5.

Devils, I like your posts a lot. I want to correct one misconception I think you may have. You say that EB oversold their preorders and thus weren't able to meet their orders on launch day.

This ignores one critical fact- it is policy to presell systems above and beyond your initial allotment, AS LONG AS YOU NOTIFY THE CUSTOMER that they won't be getting one on launch day. For example, our store initially had an allotment of 17 Xbox 360s. We presold those quite quickly, and then sold another 10 or so to people who were willing to be on the second shipment list. Eventually our allotment rose to 29, so all those 10 people were called and told they would get one on launch. And slowly, more people preordered the systems for the second shipment. (which we always told people we didn't know exactly when it would be). This happened in a few cycles, and then shortly before launch, our allotment was cut. Insider rumor had it there was a large recall of defective systems. But still, most of the people we had to call and tell they wouldn't get a launch day system had originally expected that, and only a few took their deposits back.

Also want to say that auto and toy retail still have a major difference- toy stores only see that during the holiday season, and auto dealers, while they may experience shortages anytime of year, they don't get a mad rush the day a new model is delivered.

[Darren870]

Please go and ask a regional, DM, or manager before making statements like this as this was not some immature misdirected piece of information. If your pre-orders have not been removed, your manager has not been doing his job as this task comes out in a directive generally every quarter.

You are wrong simply put. My manager is one of the most respected in the region for his store is ranked #9 in the country.

Its not quarterly and depending on the title its not even every 6 months. That has always been gamestop not EB games. This has been brought up on many, many confrence calls.

[Darren870]

This ignores one critical fact- it is policy to presell systems above and beyond your initial allotment, AS LONG AS YOU NOTIFY THE CUSTOMER that they won't be getting one on launch day. For example, our store initially had an allotment of 17 Xbox 360s. We presold those quite quickly, and then sold another 10 or so to people who were willing to be on the second shipment list. Eventually our allotment rose to 29, so all those 10 people were called and told they would get one on launch. And slowly, more people preordered the systems for the second shipment. (which we always told people we didn't know exactly when it would be). This happened in a few cycles, and then shortly before launch, our allotment was cut. Insider rumor had it there was a large recall of defective systems. But still, most of the people we had to call and tell they wouldn't get a launch day system had originally expected that, and only a few took their deposits back.


We were supposed to get 110 but we got cut down to 46 like 3 weeks before. Our DM told us we should see shipments every week though, that never happened. The recalls though, who really knows. That could still be a rumor, I have yet to hear any official word on that.

[Avatard]

This whole thing has become absolutly hilarious. Because I have a problem with EBGames all of a sudden I'm some yelling, screaming, dickheaded, corporation hating hippie street trash.

The bottom line is I AM the customer. I am NOT happy. Plus I have a valid reason for not being happy. Therefore something IS wrong with the company or their practices.

I've worked customer service before, and the customers are definatly not always right. However, if one said "hey, help me find this item and whistle yankee doodle while you do it" then I'd do it to keep them happy even though the stores policy didn't state that I had to whistle. The main focus is the CUSTOMER.

The customers don't care that its soooooo stressfull to keep the game on a shelf for more than 48 hours. We don't care to become a stat in your computer as a new release sale. We typically DO care to keep stores we like in business and we want to see stores that shaft us fail. If they called and said "hey bud, we really need you to pick this up today, it would help us out greatly" I woulda been there asap. No fuss no mess. They could atleast have tried to work up a deal and not tell me that I MUST pick it up within the next 24 hours or its gone. That floats like a turd in a punch bowl with me.

And don't try to throw in "oh, but what if its there for a million billion years and they have to pay inventory taxes on it, there has to be a line somewhere!" Sure, there has to be a line somewhere, but obviously NOT 2 days with no warning! In fact, I would have been content with 2 days IF I WERE TOLD AHEAD OF TIME.

Hey Devil, wanna come be a manager down here? I'd buy form your store. Hell, if you weren't in Canada I'd probably consider mail ordering from you. I just want to find somewhere that cares about customers.

*Off Topic* Every XBox360 pre-order I've seen through EBGames the sales people explained that yes they were reserving an xBox however its unlikely that they would have one from the first batch. Up front and honest. Too bad they didn't tell them "if it comes out monday and you work during store hours untill saturday then your xbox360 will be sold".